Many food producers have long shied away from implementing production software with track
and trace capabilities — thinking it was
too time-consuming an undertaking
and too big of an investment. Instead,
they’ve opted for paper-based production
management systems. But these systems
can’t capture real-time information.

And, like any other system that relies on
human input, they can be prone to error.

Now, new Manufacturing Execution
System (MES) applications can provide a
simpler and less expensive approach to
track and trace. They can help you:

• Spot quality issues before they leave
your plant

• Demonstrate regulatory compliance on
demand

• Adjust operations on the fly in response
to supply-chain disruptions

What Are MES Applications?

While a traditional MES system is
typically a multi-site enterprise solution,
individual MES applications can be
deployed at the machine or work-area

level to address unique needs.

The applications have minimal

infrastructure requirements, because

you can deploy them on top of your
existing framework. They also use guided
and graphical configuration to ease
implementation compared to a traditional

MES system, which can require expertise

from several disciplines. And over time,
you can scale an MES application up to
a larger, integrated MES system as you
realize ROI.

Different fit-for-purpose MES

applications also allow you to address
different operations challenges.

For example, a production-managementapplication can visualize and manage yourentire order process, from initializationto shipment. This can help you keepproduction running smoothly while meetingquality and cost targets. The applicationcan manage your bill of material, downloadand verify equipment configurations foreach order, provide work instructions,enforce workflows, confirm that productionfollows the proper route and assign serialnumbers to products.

A production-management application
can also record every production step
for quality, compliance and continuous-improvement purposes. You can use this
data to monitor your KPIs or analyze your
order processes. Or, looking at a report
for a specific product, you can see all the
steps it has gone through in production,
what materials were consumed and all
the collected data associated with it.

MES-Based Track And Trace

The ability to track, at any time and
in any plant, what you’re making and
how you’re making it can bring big
business benefits that reverberate beyond
the plant floor.

For example, an MES application with
traceability can give you the data you
need to not only identify a quality issue
but also why it occurred and its possible
impact. This can help you spot issues
before products leave your plant, as well
as minimize or perhaps even negate the
impact of recalls. That, in turn, can help
you improve brand loyalty.

An MES application can also help you
improve productivity and more efficiently
demonstrate compliance with regulatory
requirements. Paper-based data collection
can be time- and labor-intensive. But an
MES application can automate your data
collection and reporting — and reduce
the risk of error in the process.

The ability to create enforceableworkflows — and verify that workersfollow them — can also help you error-proof your production processes andreduce variance. This can help youbetter meet your quality, cost anddelivery goals.

Enforceable workflows also create
another means of data collection. You
can use them to record data such as
timestamps and electronic signatures for
processes, materials, equipment, tools,
operators and test results. This can help
you more easily achieve and demonstrate
regulatory compliance.

Achieving Compliance AndBoosting Production

Food companies around the world are
using MES to meet more rigorous track
and trace requirements while maintaining
— or even improving — productivity.

That was the case for a leading
infant-formula maker in China. The
company used an MES in a new plant to
comply with a more stringent traceability
regulation, increase productivity by 3
percent and decrease labor costs by

7 percent.

After contamination issues arose in
the country, the China Food and Drug
Administration (CFDA) revised regulations
in product traceability that made track and
trace systems mandatory. The formula

Simplify Your Track And Trace DeploymentWith MES Applications

By Todd Montpas

Fit-for-purpose production software allows you to implement traceability with less
cost and complexity